Staff Technical Architect

Appnovation; Austin (TX); On-site; USD 180,000 - 260,000; Full time

Job summary

Appnovation is seeking a Senior Technical Architect (Director level) to lead the technical strategy and oversee the architecture for a global division. You will translate business priorities into a target architecture and advise senior leaders on enterprise standards, security and scalability.

In addition to strategic leadership, you will embed with delivery teams as a Forward Deployed Engineer to solve complex challenges and ensure fast, safe, and reusable digital capabilities across platforms.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field.
• Advanced degree in technology, engineering, or related discipline.
• Experience acting as a technical advisor or design authority.
• Experience partnering with business and Digital stakeholders to shape technical direction and measurable outcomes.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills in cross‑functional environments.

Responsibilities

• Craft the technical strategy and oversee architecture for a global division.
• Shape division's technical direction to align with enterprise standards and enable scalable solutions.
• Represent the division in Architecture Review Board and guide decisions on digital solutions.
• Partner with senior business and Digital leaders as a trusted technical advisor.
• Embed within delivery teams as a Forward Deployed Engineer to unblock execution.

Skills

Technical expertise

Cloud platforms

Data & integration patterns

APIs

Security

Reliability

Problem solving

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science/Engineering/Information Systems

Advanced degree in technology/engineering

Job description

• As a Senior Technical Architect (Director level), you will join a highly motivated and experienced team as the technical leader accountable for crafting the technical strategy and overseeing the technical landscape and architecture for one of our business divisions
• You will shape the division’s technical direction — ensuring its technology choices are modern, secure, scalable, reusable and aligned to enterprise architecture standards — translate divisional business priorities into a clear target architecture, and act as a trusted technical advisor to senior business and Digital leaders, enterprise architects and platform teams
• While you operate at a strategic leadership level, you will also frequently wear the hat of a Forward Deployed Engineer, embedding yourself within delivery teams to navigate complex technical challenges, unblock execution and bridge the gap between architectural vision and operational reality
• We are looking for a senior, hands-on technical expert who can create clarity from complexity, make sound architecture and technology choices, guide teams through influence, and set the technical direction that delivers faster, safer and more reusable digital capabilities
• Divisional Technology Strategy: Create and maintain the technical strategy for an ELT-level global division, connecting divisional business priorities, enterprise architecture standards, and emerging technology into a clear, actionable roadmap and target-state architecture
• Architecture and Technical Landscape: Own and oversee the division’s technical landscape and target architecture, defining key technical standards, integration patterns, and reference architectures, and ensuring technology decisions are sound, sustainable, and fit for scale
• Architecture Review Board Decision-Making: Represent the division in the Architecture Review Board, evaluating proposed digital solutions, making informed architecture decisions, and approving or rejecting architecture requests alongside the ARB chair to ensure solutions align to divisional priorities, enterprise standards, platform strategy, security expectations, and long-term technical sustainability
• Enterprise and Platform Alignment: Ensure divisional technology needs are mapped to enterprise platforms and standards, so the division reuses shared capabilities and integrates cleanly into the broader platform spine
• Reusable Standards and Scaled Efficiencies: Identify opportunities to establish new technical standards, reusable patterns, and delivery efficiencies that solve divisional needs while creating approaches that can be adopted and scaled across other divisions and enterprise platforms
• Trusted Technical Advisor: Partner with global senior divisional business and Digital leaders as a trusted advisor, translating ambiguous needs into practical technical choices, delivery models, and measurable outcomes
• AI-Enabled Delivery: Define how AI, automation, and modern engineering practices are responsibly applied within the division to increase speed, improve quality, strengthen decision-making, and maintain appropriate governance and verification
• Technical Guidance and Mentorship: Provide technical leadership and mentorship to divisional engineering and delivery teams, raising technical standards and building capability through influence rather than direct authority
• Reliability, Security, and Governance: Establish and uphold expectations for reliability, security, documentation, and operational excellence across the division’s technical landscape, ensuring it is compliant, observable, and resilient

Deep, hands-on technical expertise in modern engineering practices, cloud platforms, data and integration patterns, APIs, security, and reliabilityDemonstrated experience defining the technical strategy, architecture, or technical landscape for a significant business area, product, or technology domainBachelor’s Degree in Computer Science, Engineering, Information Systems, or a related field, with proven experience in technical architecture, engineering, or technology strategyExperience acting as a technical advisor or design authority, guiding teams and stakeholders through influence rather than direct authorityExperience partnering with business and Digital stakeholders to shape technical direction and measurable outcomesYou have solid analytical, problem solving and decision‑making skillsYou have strong self‑initiative, passion, interpersonal, oral and written communication and collaboration skills with the ability to work, influence and make an impact in a cross‑functional environment with all levels of the organizationYou have customer first mindset and a devotion to customer serviceYou set high standards for code quality, performance/scalability and security and seek continuous improvementYou actively seek out things outside your comfort zone with the ability to rapidly learn and take advantage of new concepts, business models, and technologiesYou are responsive and thrive in a fast‑paced diverse high‑performance environment with rapidly changing business needsYou engage and build positive internal and external client relationships, while managing multiple initiatives, often with competing prioritiesPrior experience and connections in the Life Sciences industry is preferredYou have prior experience in consultingYou understand lean thinkingYou think about how to scale, automate and operate, not just how to build a solution to an immediate problemAdvanced degree in a technology, engineering, or related disciplineExperience operating in a highly regulated, global enterprise environment with complex compliance, privacy, security, and risk expectationsExperience applying AI‑enabled delivery, automation, and platform reuse to improve speed and qualityTrack record of influencing senior stakeholders, building trusted partnerships, and creating clarity in ambiguous situationsRecognized technical depth in the division’s core technology domain (e.g., commercial, R&D, manufacturing and supply, or enabling-function technologies, as applicable)